First Encounters
by ILoveTea
Summary: Jarod discovers new things after he got out of the Centre. New chapter is up! Jarod sings? Could it be?
1. Chapter 1 Crosswords

**FIRST ENCOUNTERS**

By ILoveTea

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Chapter 1. Crosswords

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Disclaimer: I don't own The Pretender & Winnie the Pooh

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The doors opened. Jarod stepped in. His eyes scanned the bus until he found an empty seat near the back. Sitting next to the window was a girl with bright blue hair. Her expression was so serious, Jarod didn't greet her like he always did to any fellow passenger. Her left hand was holding a newspaper while her right hand twirled a pen.

Curious as always, Jarod peered in to see what the girl was reading. All he saw was a list of things and something like a checkerboard, but the black and white squares looked random. There were letters on some white squares.

At that moment the girl scribbled something on the checkerboard. E-E-Y-O-R-E. Jarod was confused. Of all the things he had learned at the Centre, he had never heard of the word.

The girl used the first "e" to write "egg" and the last "e" to spell "glue," both vertically. He finally asked the girl, "Excuse me, but what is eeyore?"

The blue haired girl replied without turning, "The pessimist in children lit."

"Sorry?"

The girl turned her head toward Jarod and raised her blue eyebrow. "Don't tell me you've never heard of Eeyore and Winnie the Pooh."

"Winne the Pooh?"

"Yes, of the Hundred-Acre-Woods and Christopher Robin."

A confused look appeared in Jarod's face. "I've never been to any forest. But I would love to. Where is it?"

The girl turned to Jarod. "It's not really a forest. It's just a story by A.A. Milne, about a boy named Christopher Robin and his friends who live in the Hundred-Acre-Woods."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a cell-phone. On the screen was a picture of a smiling yellow bear in a red shirt. "See, this is Winnie the Pooh." She pressed a few buttons and showed more pictures to Jarod as she switched screens. "The blue-gray donkey with grave expression is Eeyore. He is almost always sad." She chuckled. "They gave an interesting clue. At first I didn't get it, but finally I understand. A pessimist, indeed."

"What clue?"

"The clue for the crossword puzzle."

A light bulb went on in Jarod's head. "Ah, so that's what the checkerboard is. A puzzle."

"You've never seen a crossword puzzle before?" The girl put up her hand. "Don't tell me. If you've never heard of Winnie the Pooh, it's reasonable that you've never heard of crossword puzzles also."

Jarod nodded.

"Where did you grow up? A jungle in the middle of nowhere?"

Jarod smiled. "Sort of."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Sometimes, my mouth is faster than my brain. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's okay, really. Now tell me about the crossword puzzle. I love solving puzzles."

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Miss Parker entered Broots' office to find the techie reading as Sydney leaned over his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure I know the answer to 16 across," the pyschiatrist said.

Broots chuckled. "Wait until Miss Parker sees this."

"See what, Broots?"

Both men turned their head in unison. As if sitting on hot coal, Broots almost jumped from his seat. He nervously greeted Miss Parker.

She walked over to Broots' table and glared at him with her piercing blue eyes.

Handing her a piece of paper, he explained. "Jarod sent this, a crossword puzzle with Centre-related clues."

Her eyes quickly found 16 across. It had 10 letters. The clue was "Ice Queen."

FIN

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A/N: I don't know whether Jarod has ever seen a crossword puzzle or no, but this is my take on what may happen when he sees it for the first time. This is part of First Encounters series about how Jarod discovers new things after he got out of the Centre.

I thank AJeff for her beta. You did a wonderful job ^_^


	2. Chapter 2 The Swing

The Swing

By IloveTea

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Disclaimer: I don't own The Pretender nor do I own Robert Louis Stevenson.

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He was a Pretender, a genius with the ability to be whatever he wanted to be. This time, he needed his brawn more than his brain. His newest pretend was working at a farm from dawn to dusk. Several chores needed to be done...working in the field, tending the garden, and fixing the water pump to name a few. This was a welcomed change from working as a research scientist for several months.

As he was finishing the repairs on the stable door, his friend Rob walked through the meadow gates.

"Hey there, Jarod. Busy?"

"Nope. I've just finished here. What's up?"

"I need some help putting up the swing," Rob said.

"The swing?" Jarod asked.

"Yeah. Mrs. Stevens said her grandchildren are coming next week. She wanted a swing for them to play with."

"Oh, okay." Jarod's brown eyes sparkled, he smiled showing the indentation of his dimples. He walked along side of his friend. A swing was foreign to him, there were no swings at the Centre. He had no clue what sort of amusement it would bring to Mrs. Stevens' grandchildren.

"This looks like the perfect place to set up the swing." Rob pointed to the huge beautiful tree facing them. "What do you think?"

"It's a mighty big one," Jarod said.

After a couple of hours, they finished their handy work. "Not bad, eh?" Rob said.

Jarod nodded. "Not bad at all."

"Why don't you try it? You're bigger than I am. If the swing can hold you, it can hold Mrs. Stevens' grandkids," Rob said.

Jarod hesitated, unsure of what to do.

"Hey! Haven't you been on a swing before?" Rob pointed to the object. "Just sit, and I'll push."

Jarod felt his feet off of the ground. Like a child, he laughed out loud. "Higher! Make it go higher!"

"You look so happy," Rob said.

"I've never been on a swing before," Jarod confessed.

"Where'd you grow up? In a prison?" Rob pushed Jarod harder and higher.

"Something like that. Higher!" Jarod laughed.

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Miss Parker held the envelope between her slim fingers. What had Jarod sent her this time? Sydney and Broots watched, and waited for her to open her mail. She took out a piece of paper. She skimmed through the words quickly, then handed it to Sydney.

"It seems that rat boy is having a good time. He's such a child." The Ice Queen huffed, walking out her office.

Sydney read aloud while Broots listened.

**How do you like to go up in a swing,**

**Up in the air so blue?**

**Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing**

**Ever a child can do! **

**Up in the air and over the wall,**

**Till I can see so wide,**

**Rivers and trees and cattle and all**

**Over the countryside- **

**Till I look down on the garden green,**

**Down on the roof so brown-**

**Up in the air I go flying again,**

**Up in the air and down!**

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A/N: The poem was taken from A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson.

I dedicate this story to my sister who loves swings.

AJeff, your beta improved the fic. Of course I don't mind.


	3. Chapter 3 Just Sing!

Just Sing!

By ILoveTea

A/N: I don't know whether Jarod can sing or not. If he can, please tell me in what episode he sings, because I would love to see it.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Pretender.

Someone laid a hand on Jarod's shoulder.

"Hey, man. Let's go now. Those numbers can wait until tomorrow."

"Just a minute. I have to save this worksheet first," Jarod told his co-worker as he typed.

"Sure. I'll be waiting by the elevator."

Jarod turned off the monitor, grabbed his jacket, and walked out of his cubicle. He found his friend by the elevator doors, humming a popular tune.

"So, Luis, where are you taking me?"

"It's a secret. You'll see."

Those words did nothing to calm the Pretender. Luis had been curious about Jarod's curiosity of trivial things, so the former Centre prisoner made up stories about being home-schooled and having very protective parents. Actually, it was not far from the truth. Since then, Luis had taken him to numerous places that his fellow accountant thought would broaden Jarod's mind. On their last adventure they had gone to a strip club. A genius Jarod was, but sometimes it was overwhelming. Today Luis had promised him a night of musical galore. They had been to a concert and an opera before, so Jarod didn't have a clue of where they were heading.

When they arrived, Jarod looked around. It looked like a normal bar. He was about to question Luis when suddenly he noticed a woman walked up to the stage, taking her position behind the microphone. People clapped their hands as she began to sing.

After a few minutes of audio torture, Jarod asked his friend. "Luis, what place is this? How come they are still in business when they hire a lousy singer like her?"

"That's why this place is still in business, man. Because we can sing like her."

"What?"

"This is a karaoke bar."

"Karaoke?" Jarod cocked his head in confusion.

"Yeah. Just watch. See, she's a guest, just like us. It's that man's turn now."

Jarod turned his attention to an elderly man adjusting the microphone's height. The man smiled shyly as he waved towards someone in the audience. The lady, Jarod guessed was the man's wife, smiled encouragingly and applauded loudly. The karaoke singer sang My Way beautifully, as if Frank Sinatra himself had been singing. The whole place erupted in applause.

Someone shouted "Encore!" and the others followed. The karaoke machine operator showed some options and the man settled for It's A Wonderful World. When he returned to his table people were still clapping with excitement.

Luis nudged his friend. "So, are you going to sing?"

"What?" Jarod noticed it was his second "What" tonight. I'm beginning to sound like Miss Parker, he thought.

"Singing. On stage."

"Oh, I don't know," the pretender shrugged.

"Come on, man. It's easy. Don't worry that you don't have the voice of Pavarotti. You just have to get up there and sing," Luis urged him.

"Broots, are you sure this is the place?"

The computer tech removed his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on. He read the bar's name, glowing in neon, and checked his notes.

"Yes. The man in the accounting firm said Jarod came here often."

Miss Parker opened the door and walked in. Sydney and Broots closely shadowed her. They were greeted by a man mopping the floor.

"The place's still closed. We open at 6. Come back later."

Miss Parker walked up to him and showed him a photograph. "We're looking for this man. Have you seen him?"

He looked at the picture and pointed to the bar. "Ask Marlee over there," he said as he continued mopping.

A middle-aged woman walked out from behind the bar. "Hello, how can I help you?"

Miss Parker flashed the picture of her childhood friend. "We're looking for him."

The woman smiled. "You must be Miss Parker."

"How do you know?"

"He told me that three friends would come, searching for him. You look as pretty as Jarod said. He left something for you, Honey. Wait a minute, I'll be right back."

Miss Parker lifted an eyebrow. "Honey?"

Sydney noticed that Miss Parker was not disturbed that Jarod had complimented on her beauty.

Marlee gave them the package from Jarod. "What place is this?" Broots asked.

"Why, this is a karaoke bar, Dear. Do you like to sing? You're welcome to sing here tonight."

Miss Parker was intrigued. "Did Jarod sing? On stage?"

"Of course, Sugar. Twice a week."

Marlee chuckled when she saw the surprised looks on the three of them.

"That sweetheart is lucky. Without his charms and good looks, he would have been banned from this place altogether," Marlee laughed.

"Is he that bad?" Broots chuckled.

"I'm afraid he is."

They heard a snort and it quickly turned into a giggle. Three pairs of eyes stared at a laughing Miss Parker.

"Turns out there is something Wonderboy can't do, right Freud?"

A/N: Like I said before, I don't know whether Jarod can sing or not. I just thought that it would be fun to see that Jarod is just like any other person who has flaws. This time his flaw is his voice. If the Pretender lives in this era, what do you think his favorite song will be?

A/N: Thank you AJeff for your beta. I know you have lots of things to do, but yet you find a time to do this.


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